Just Continue That Thought...

A thought by Mark Batterson from his book, Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (p. 98). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Maybe this will help you in something you are going through. Mark says, “Our first attempt at church planting was a failure, and I’ve shared some of those hard lessons in other books, but let me fill in a few of the blanks. In the wake of that failure, I was reading a ministry magazine when I came across an advertisement for a parachurch ministry in Washington, DC. I have no idea why I stopped flipping pages, but that ad arrested my attention. The door to DC opened just a crack. I made a phone call, which led to a visit, which led to a 595-mile leap of faith from Chicago to DC, which led to the past twenty years of ministry in the nation’s capital. “That sounds neat and clean, but it was an agonizing decision. Lora and I both grew up in the Chicago area, so it was all we had ev

A thought by Mark Batterson from his book, Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (p. 88). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you found that true?   Your emotions can really be of great help in so many different ways but they can also really bring great harm when they are out of control. Mark says, “Generally speaking, don’t make decisions when you’re in an emotional frenzy or funk. That’s how you get tattoos in the wrong places. That’s when you say things and do things you’ll regret. And that’s where the ninth fruit of the Spirit is so critical. (See Galatians 5:22-23) Actually, I think self-control is listed last because it takes the longest to cultivate. As the emotional gatekeeper, it keeps the other emotions in check.” He goes on, “When Abraham Lincoln was upset with someone, he had a habit of composing what he called a ‘hot letter.’ It was a cathartic exercise, putting all his anger and fru

A thought by Mark Batterson from his book,    Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (p. 82). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Five days a week Margaret and I get on the 101 and head to her job.   One of the great pleasures is to see the Sun coming up over the San Gabriel Mountains.   God created the Sunrise for a lot of reasons and our pleasure is one of them. Mark says, “When did we start believing that God wants to send us to places we don’t want to go to do things we don’t want to do? Sure, taking up our cross involves sacrifice. But when we delight ourselves in the Lord, God will give us the desire to do whatever He’s called us to do, no matter how difficult it is.” He goes on, “I’ve had many conversations with church planters over the years, and one of the common questions they wrestle with is where to plant a church. Many of them have done demographic studies, and that’s due diligence. But I a

A thought by Mark Batterson from his book, Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (p. 80). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) What do you love to do?   What is your greatest desire? Mark shares, “When I was in seminary, there was a distinct moment when I felt called to write. I was praying in the chapel when the still small voice whispered, Mark, I’ve called you to be a voice to your generation. The irony is that I had just taken a graduate assessment that showed a low aptitude for writing. “Writing is not a natural gifting, but God compensated for that by giving me a strong desire to write. And trust me, it takes a ton of desire to meet deadlines. Sometimes your desires will line up with your talents, and that’s where you’re doubly dangerous to the Enemy! But God also calls us to do things that are outside our skill sets, requiring tremendous dependence upon His help. He goes on, “At first my de